Striker James Beattie spearheads revival for Blades with a double

Brian Howard has been gagged by former club Barnsley, preventing him from joining the acclaim for Sheffield United showstealer James Beattie.

Howard embroidered United’s third win in a week with an artistic debut as substitute following a Beattie double. Then it emerged the midfielder’s continuing silence over his move to Bramall Lane was a condition of the £600,000 transfer that will be made permanent in January.

United manager Kevin Blackwell kept out of a diplomatic stand-off between Bramall Lane and Oakwell before the former Barnsley skipper finally completed a deal struck a week earlier.

Head and shoulders above: James Beattie scores his second

Blackwell said: ‘ It’s a strange one. The agreement between the two clubs is that he’s not allowed to speak. Barnsley have got the money (£200,000 up front) and I feel both parties are happy.’

There’s little doubt United are the happier, the more so now that a three-game winning run — launched on the rebound from a 6-0 Carling Cup calamity at Arsenal — has brought their expected push towards the promotion places to belated reality.

If there is a concern it is that one man has made the difference, though Blackwell sees only the positive side of Beattie’s presence following the £4million striker’s timely return from knee surgery — after the transfer window closed.

United were toiling until Beattie spectacularly volleyed in David Cotterill’s deep corner just before the break.

Blackwell said: ‘That goal changed the game. Having someone like Beatts can also be the difference between top and bottom in this League.

‘It’s vital to have goalscorers. If a game is tight you need a bit of magic to unlock it.’

Happy man: Sheffield United boss Kevin Blackwell is very happy with his goalscorer James Beattie

Once the door was ajar, United stormed through it and Beattie’s header for his second goal put paid to Bristol City after an own goal from Liam Fontaine had sandwiched the striker’s efforts.

But Blackwell said: ‘James needs the service — we need to be smarter and brighter to provide him with it at times.’

Cue Howard, the inspiration for Barnsley’s run to the FA Cup semi-finals last season.

The United manager said: ‘Brian can add something with his clever passes, but after three wins out of three there’s no need for major changes — he’ll have to wait for his chance.

‘We gave ourselves too much to do last season. We’re now fourth and I’d have taken that at this stage.’

Bristol City conceded all three goals from set pieces, and they have now won just once in seven matches. But manager Gary Johnson put the slide — widely predicted after last season’s near miss on promotion — into perspective.

He said: ‘If we’d won here, we’d have been only one point behind where we were last season.

‘We warned the players about set plays beforehand but we didn’t deal with them. We were second best, but, as an honest bunch, we can admit it. We’ve lost a bit of confidence and can work on that in the break.’

Blackwell, meanwhile, wishes his side could rip straight into neighbours Wednesday — their opponents in the first Sheffield derby in a fortnight — after leapfrogging Brian Laws’ men.